Newbie to hobby farming

3 posts
Tue, 03/03/2015 - 21:54 #1

Member for

9 years 8 months
barbhayes2934
Last seen: 03/08/2018 - 21:05
Joined: 03/03/2015 - 21:38

Newbie to hobby farming

Hi There, I have 25 acres in the Port Stephens Area NSW and don't know where to start. I'm a complete novice however was raised on a farm and I'm not afraid of hard work. I will be a weekend warrior and will occasionally enlist some help from friends and family. Block needs light scrub clearing and general tidy up. First question what type of tractor slasher multi purpose attachments etc would be best? Best value for money New or second hand?? Look forward to your advice! Barb :)

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Wed, 03/11/2015 - 05:23 #2
jolls
Last seen: 01/12/2020 - 21:19
Joined: 09/23/2011 - 16:27
Hi Barb, I think it all depends on what you intend to do with your land and how you intend to manage it. I purchased an mid 1950s diesel tractor and slasher and only used it in the first year when I was getting my fencing and sheep squared away. Now the sheep do all of the hard work. The tractor still comes in handy for digging post holes for fencing etc so if you are going down that route a good second hand tractor of around 35 horsepower will drive a slasher and auger. If you look at the permaculture approach pigs and chickens do all the work, although creating swales will require some plant equipment that would most likely be best to hire (probably with an operator). The one thing not to skimp on if you intend to have large areas of "lawn" is a ride on mower. you will want to spend some extra dollars on something with a fabricated as opposed to pressed deck. I killed a cheap one over three mowing seasons having to repair the deck and steering linkages twice. Graden, an Australian company make good solid zero toun mowers with the only plastic being the seat! There are a few imported brands around the same price point. Don't tell my lovely wife - but we could probably sell off the tractor and slasher. What is a hobby farm without a tractor though? Given you will be doing this on weekends with the help of friends it would be worth the exercise to figure out how much fencing and clearing needs to be done and balance that out do determine the break even point. There is an article on this site that covers the topic well. I trust this helps. Cheers Jolls
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Thu, 03/12/2015 - 10:06 #3
barb
Last seen: 09/17/2019 - 18:07
Joined: 11/23/2011 - 09:38

Hi Barb,

I agree a small 35 HP tractor would be the way to go. New or secondhand I suggest the 5 implements you might need are:

1. a bucket

2. a blade. Regarding the blade, get a front attaching one not a back blade. I found that using the back blade, gave me a really sore neck and back, from looking behind me all the time.

3. a set of forks

4. a post hole digger

5. A slasher can be very handy too.

 

There a couple a small tractors on the market if you want to buy a new one, that are a reasonable price. One of these is a Kubota, that seems to have quite a good range of implements available. I have no idea how reliable this brand is, as I have only seen them at the Agricultural shows and not actually used one.

 

 

Cheers,

Barb

 

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